Cracker Barrel Grilled Chicken Tenders

Are you one of those people who is always looking for the menu items at a restaurant that sound healthy?  I am.  I'm fully aware that just because something is listed as grilled doesn't mean that the chef didn't drench it in steak butter before putting it on my plate (and in the process make it both totally delicious and totally not fit my allotted calories for the meal), but I feel like a failure when I don't at least order the item that sounds healthy.  Lucky for me I love salads and whether you load them with fatty cheeses, meats, and dressings or not they still sound healthy when you order them.

So, when we order Cracker Barrel I frequently order the grilled chicken tenders because they are packed with flavor thanks to this delicious marinade, but still sound healthy because they are grilled rather than fried like almost everything else on their menu.  (Seriously, nothing at Cracker Barrel is healthy.)

The marinade is only 3 ingredients, and since you pour the whole marinade in the pan with the chicken there's really no reason to let it sit for any length of time before cooking them, even though the recipe says to.  The chicken actually cooked so fast that my potatoes were a little behind.  I have altered the recipe a tiny bit (partly because I don't like to measure things), but you can find the original here.

Cracker Barrel Grilled Chicken Tenders

1 lb chicken tenders

1 cup zesty Italian dressing (I used the fat free)

1 lime, juiced

1 Tbsp honey

In a liquid measuring cup combine the dressing, lime juice, and honey and mix with a fork.

Place the chicken tenders in a quart or gallon sized zipper bag and pour the marinade over them.  Let sit in the fridge for about an hour.

Pour the entire contents of the bag into a large skillet and heat on medium.

Just keep letting it simmer.

The marinade cooks into the chicken making it so delicious!

Keep cooking until it looks like this.

Then turn it over.  Well, mine got a little burned when I was checking the potatoes, but it still tasted wonderful.

Place on a serving plate and serve with "fixin's" as Cracker Barrel calls them.

We had mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese and salad.

Bailey got to enjoy some too.  She ate 2 whole chicken tenders, 3 strawberries, some macaroni and cheese, and lots of frozen frozen mixed vegetables.

I'd call this recipe a success, especially since Aaron says I need to put this on the menu twice next month.  Make it!  It's tasty!